The invention relates to a connector for terminating flat ribbon cable having a plurality of closely-spaced parallel signal and ground conductors.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,260,209 discloses an electrical connector for terminating flat ribbon cable of the type having a plurality of signal and ground conductors enclosed in an insulative jacket. The connector has signal contacts with slotted beams for insulation displacement termination of the signal conductors, and a ground bus with slotted beams for insulation displacement termination of the ground conductors. The slotted beams of the signal contacts are disposed at one elevation, and the slotted beams of the ground bus are disposed at a different elevation. Prior to termination, the insulative jacket must be stripped to expose the signal and ground conductors individually so as to permit separation of the signal and ground conductors into different planes. The stripping operation is time consuming and adds to manufacturing cost. Further, after the signal and ground conductors are terminated they reside at different heights in the connector, thereby increasing the overall size of the connector.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,382 discloses an electrical connector for terminating flat ribbon cable wherein the signal and ground conductors reside at the same height after termination. However, a portion of the insulative jacket still must be stripped from the signal and ground conductors prior to termination. Also, the unstripped portion of the flat cable is bent back over the connector after termination so that it can be gripped by a strain relief. There is a need for a simpler and more effective connector for terminating flat ribbon cable.
The invention is an electrical connector for terminating flat cable of the type having a plurality of signal and ground conductors in parallel alignment. The connector comprises a housing which holds a plurality of signal contacts and a ground bus. Each of the signal contacts has a signal conductor termination slot configured for insulation displacement termination of a respective said signal conductor. The ground bus has a plurality of ground conductor termination slots each configured for insulation displacement termination of a respective said ground conductor, and at least one bypass slot configured to permit at least one of said signal conductors to pass through said ground bus without termination thereto. According to the invention, the signal conductor termination slots, the ground conductor termination slots and the at least one bypass slot are arranged such that the plurality of signal and ground conductors reside in a common plane in the connector after termination thereto.
According to another aspect of the invention, the ground bus also has a signal conductor termination slot configured for insulation displacement termination of a respective one of the signal conductors.